Hello Richard, An old (1753) dictionary tells me that "GRINDLE-stone" is "a kind of whitish gritty stone". But whether that plays any part in the origins of the word "Grindley" ie "Grind-ley" is another matter. The same dictionary has the word "Grindlet" which is described as "a small drain, ditch or gutter" Jim H.. On Fri, Jun 26, 2009 at 10:06 AM, Richard Talbot < richard.talbot88@btinternet.com> wrote: > In the manorial court records for Newcastle-under-Lyme there are many > references to Grindley, grindley fields, farm etc. dating from the late 17th > century. Also on a map of 1775 the whole area was called Grindley Hill. 1572 > Grindle, 1586 Gryndleyfield and Gryndley Hill, 1596 Grinley > > Any thoughts on where the name of Grindley would have come from. >